The Politics Of Religion And Hate. Democratic Perspective welcomes Peter Montgomery of Right Wing Watch, a project of People For The American Way, to discuss the growing threat of White Christian Nationalism.

When asked if the difference between Christian nationalism and white supremacy, Montgomery responds that there is a lot of overlap, noting they’re both grounded in the same kind of politics of grievance. He explains that both groups believe that this country was founded by and for white Christians, and that other people are trying to take it away from them or have taken it away from them. “And that’s why all this grievous rhetoric you see from the religious right about secularists and feminists driving prayer out of the schools or, you know, forcing kids, you know, to be in schools where there are affirming policies toward gay kids.”

He continues, “It’s the same issue as white nationalists…that

The post Montgomery Interview – Podcast October 3, 2022 first appeared on .

Working To Find Common Ground. Steve Williamson, Karen McClelland and Stephen Hanks welcome U.S. Congressman Tom O’Halleran to discuss the issues and his campaign for re-election in a newly apportioned district in Arizona. The new district stretches from the Tucson area in southern Arizona to the Utah border, even larger than the district he currently represents. Yet despite the enormous territory, O’Halleran says he holds more town halls with constituents than the rest of Arizona’s delegation combined.

“My philosophy is very simple. We, as Americans, are a

Asked about the impact of the Supreme Court’s decision

The post O’Halleran Interview – Podcast September 26, 2022 first appeared on .

Investing In Arizona. Not Politics. Steve Williamson and Karen McClelland welcome Arizona Senator Martin Quezada, candidate for Arizona State Treasurer. Quezada says that treasurer is a much different role than serving in the Senate. “The role of treasurer, ideally, should be much less political, much less partisan, and much more technical.” He explains, “The treasurer basically serves three main roles in our state government: Number one, you’re the chief banker, number two the chief investment officer, and number three the chief financial officer.”

As chief investment officer, Quezada notes that the Treasurer is in charge of investing a portfolio of more than $23 billion, adding that where the money is invested should reflect the priorities of the people of Arizona. For example, investing in things that address the massive threat of climate change.

Quezada promises to bring new energy and a new commitment to the office, noting that the current and two previous treasurers seemed more concerned with running for higher office. He says that current treasurer Kimberly Yee spent the first two years in office running for governor while checking in to the Treasury office only once every two weeks.

The post Quezada Interview – Podcast September 19, 2022 first appeared on .

Hyper-partisanship, Polarization, And Political Realignment. Karen McClelland and Stephen Hanks welcome Rachel Bitecofer, Political Scientist and Election Analyst, to discuss the upcoming midterms. She begins by noting that the electorate is always in flux driven by changing demographics, geographic allegiances, and ideologies. Bitecofer then goes on to explain how today’s hyper-partisanship and polarization affect individual level voter behavior.

For example, she does not believe you can distinguish between fascist MAGA Republicans and so-called moderate Republicans because almost all Republicans voted against an investigation of the January 6 insurrection and have since gone to great lengths to excuse the attempted coup. She says, “This is a time we must prevent them from gaining political power.”

Bitecofer says that the recent Supreme Court decision on Roe v Wade presents an opportunity for Democrats by increasing voter enthusiasm. She explains that even Republican leaning dads may be concerned about the impact on their daughters.

The post Bitecofer Interview – Podcast September 12, 2022 first appeared on .

The Yavapai College Curriculum: Addition And Subtraction With An Emphasis On Division. Addition of resources for the Prescott and Prescott Valley campuses. Subtraction of leadership and courses for the Verde Valley campuses. And division between the taxpayers on the east and west sides of the county.

To discuss the situation, Steve Williamson and Karen McClelland welcome Paul Chevalier and Bob Oliphant, current and former members of the Yavapai College Governing Board.

Oliphant begins by explaining, “What we’re really talking about here is a $93 million corporation – a publicly taxpayer supported corporation, number one. Number two, it has a complex budget…a very, very challenging budget. You have this Governing Board that Paul’s on, it is a very weak Governing Board. It’s managed by a president. We pay her around $300,000 a year now. She’s the highest paid employee in the county. All major decisions are based in Prescott.”

As an example of the inequity between the two sides of the county, Chevalier notes that, with no explanation, the college removed a much-needed 10,000 sq. ft. expansion of the Verde campus’ CTE building from the five-year plan and added a $10 million beer brewery. “I said: What’s the need for this? No answer. Second question is: How are you going to spend the $10 million and use the 14,000 sq. ft.? No answer.”

“They don’t want to be transparent,” says Chevalier. “They

Keep in mind that he is an elected member of the Governing

The post Chevalier, Oliphant Interview – Podcast September 5, 2022 first appeared on .

Keeping Elections Secure And Transparent. Karen McClelland and Stephen Hanks welcome Emily Levy, founder and director of Scrutineers, a nonpartisan organization dedicated to voting integrity and election transparency.

Levy explains that she first got involved in the aftermath

She founded Scrutineers in 2020 after noticing gaps in the work being done by other organizations. “And I also really wanted to help connect the folks who are working and have been working for generations, really, on the right to vote making sure that everybody can cast ballots and the folks who are working on making sure those votes got counted accurately. Those two groups of people have not traditionally worked together much, and I really wanted to change that.”

As for the aftermath of the 2020 election, Levy says, “It has been very painful.” She feels that her work, and that of others, has been twisted around and mixed with lies and spit out again in a way that confuses the public. But though she absolutely disagrees that the 2020 presidential election was stolen, she does believe that we should not trust the voting systems that are computerized and use proprietary software that people don’t get to see. “That message has always been hard to get through to people,” she says. “People that don’t want to hear it. And now it’s harder to be believed because so many of the people who are saying it are mixing it with so many lies.”

The post Levy Interview – Podcast August 29, 2022 first appeared on .

Christian Dominionism: Another Name For Fascism. Steve

Cohn is an election security advocate and prolific essayist who recently authored an article in a Pennsylvania newspaper, the Bucks County Beacon, about a rapidly growing worldwide theocratic movement. The movement known as the New Apostolic Reformation (NAR), which was originated by C. Peter Wagner, is determined to take control of all aspects of our society – government, business, and culture – in order for Jesus to return to Earth. Of particular concern, convicted and pardoned felons Michael Flynn and Roger Stone, along with numerous other Trump acolytes such as the My Pillow guy and other MAGA supporters seem to have formed an alliance with the movement.

The merging of such authoritarian advocates with theocrats presents a real threat to the future of our constitutional republic. Especially concerning is the fact that a number of GOP candidates, such as Pennsylvania gubernatorial candidate Doug Mastriano have espoused NAR talking points.

As Cohn points out, the NAR movement has already permeated much of America’s political and cultural life, and the movement is growing at an astonishing rate. In fact, it is now the fastest growing religion and the largest non-Catholic Christian faith. And it’s inextricably tied to Trump.

In her article, Cohn writes, “Leading NAR apostles are blatantly pro-Trump, and claim their view is supported by God, whereas opposition to Trump is satanic.” Indeed, NAR apostle Lance Wallnau claims that “Fighting with Trump is fighting God.”

The post Cohn Interview – Podcast August 22, 2022 first appeared on .

Optimism For Democrats In Upcoming Elections. Steve Williamson and Karen McClelland welcome historian Dan Singal back to the show to give his views on the current state of politic affairs. Asked about Democrats’ prospects for the midterms, Singal, who has been remarkably accurate in the past, says he is optimistic.

“I’m looking at the objective indicators and they tell me

Singal explains his optimism by noting that the price of gasoline is already going down and that the price of oil is plummeting because of China. “That means the price of gasoline is going to continue to go down,” he says. Singal points to other factors, including the robust economy, the Inflation Reduction Act and other recent legislation, as well as the Dobbs v Jackson decision which overturned Roe v Wade, and the fact that Republicans have been nominating such far right extremists.

The post Singal Interview – Podcast August 15, 2022 first appeared on .

Assessing The Cult Of Trump And Democratic Chances For The Midterms. Steve Williamson, Karen McClelland and Stephen Hanks welcome Tim Miller, former Republican strategist, and author of the best-selling book Why We Did It: A Travelogue from the Republican Road to Hell in which Miller offers his thoughts and observations on the current state of politics and why normal people became obsessed with Trumpism and its insane conspiracy theories.

About his book, Miller says, “I wanted to make sure it wasn’t

Having long worked for Republican candidates, Miller recalls bailing on Trump in 2016. “When he won…I felt guilty of complicity,” he says. “And then just a feeling of disappointment that compounds over time, And, so, I had this complex emotional reaction that put me into just a really dark, dark place.”

Unlike many, Miller has a moralistic view of politics. “Recognizing the competition, recognizing that you’re trying to beat the other side. But, also, keeping in mind that you do that within the bounds of what’s good for the country, what’s good for the people that you’re serving, whether they’re in your party or the other party. And I feel like that is really getting lost in the culture right now, and I try to expose that culture in the book.”

The post Miller Interview – Podcast August 8, 2022 first appeared on .

End Of Roe Chaos. Steve Williamson and Stephen Hanks welcome attorneys Holli Ploog and Mik Jordahl back to the show to discuss the aftermath of the US Supreme Court’s decision to dismantle the protections of Roe v Wade.

Ploog says chaos is the operative word, noting that 13 states had so-called trigger laws on the books prohibiting abortion that may now be enforced. The Arizona version, which bans all abortion and punishes providers, dates to 1901 – before women had the right to vote. To complicate matters, Jordahl explains that the state recently passed a new law that will ban abortion after 15 weeks and it also has a personhood law on the books that grants full legal rights from the moment of fertilization, which theoretically could result in murder charges for anyone performing an abortion.

All of this means that women in Arizona and many other states are now afraid to seek abortions. And clinics in the 20 states which have laws protecting abortion are overwhelmed by women seeking abortions.

Worse yet, according to our guests, the abortion decision may

The post Jordahl, Ploog Interview – Podcast August 1, 2022 first appeared on .